Fusion is a simple reform that gives candidates for elected office the freedom to run with the endorsement of more than one political party. Throughout the 19th and into the early 20th century, fusion voting was legal in nearly every state of the union. Today, fusion voting remains technically legal in seven states, though only still implemented in a few. It is part of common electoral practice in New York, and is enjoying a revival in Connecticut and South Carolina. Fusion proponents argue that legislators should consider fusion voting as a tool for invigorating our elections and as an antidote to sinking levels of voter participation and citizens’ increasing alienation from the political process.

As an election reform, fusion voting is straightforward to understand and implement: voters get a choice of candidate and a choice of party—and costs and technological changes are negligible.

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